Writing Illini
Fansided

Illinois football coach receives a rocking gift at Music City Bowl presser

The Music City Bowl between Illinois and Tennessee is on Tuesday, but the city of Nashville is pulling out all the stops to hype up the contest
ByKellen Sherman|
Share on FacebookShare on XShare on Reddit
Sep 27, 2025; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema gives players a hand after a 34-32 win against the Southern California Trojans at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
Sep 27, 2025; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Bret Bielema gives players a hand after a 34-32 win against the Southern California Trojans at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

The Illinois football program has been having a hell of a time getting ready for the Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Illini, who are 8-4 on the year heading into this game, have been getting the royal treatment between their various practices. Whether it's the meals and events that they've attended, or the hot wing eating contest that was won by freshman offensive lineman Griffin Rousseau.

The navy and orange have been running wild through the Music City. The city of Nashville, Tennessee, has made this such a unique and thrilling experience for both these teams, so much so that both coaches were actually given the guitars to the city at today's bowl press conference.

This guitar, which was specially customized to represent the history of the Illini, was given as a symbol similar to the key to the city. It was a fun little symbol of appreciation to the two coaches who decided to take part in their city's biggest sporting event of the year.

When asked about the guitar, Bret Bielema did throw Illinois men's basketball coach Brad Underwood under the bus in a comedic way.

"Excited about the guitar, we'll hopefully take care of it a little bit better than the basketball team... Those guys are a little reckless."

The Illinois football team has a chance to do something they haven't done since Ron Zook

Illinois may be enjoying the sights and sounds of Nashville between practices, but they still need to play a football game. They still have the Tennessee Volunteers on the horizon, who are basically playing a home game against the Illini on Tuesday afternoon.

The Illini, as of writing this, will be entering their third bowl of the Bielema era as the underdogs. According to DraftKings, the Illini are currently being given three points for Tuesday night's showdown.

Illinois will have their work cut out for them in this one, as they will be taking on a Tennessee squad that ranked No. 4 in the country in total offense with 482 yards per game. Sure, Illinois did have a top-50 defense this season that only allowed 350.5 yards per game, but with the likes of senior EDGE Gabe Jacas opting out, Illinois' defense will have to be on their game all night long.

The interesting part about the Music City Bowl is that if Bielema and Co. do pull off the win, it will be the first time the program has won back-to-back bowl games since the 2010 and 2011 seasons. In those two seasons, former Illinois coach Ron Zook and interim Vic Koenning recorded a combined record of 14-12.

With Illinois' recent success and the fact that they still have quarterback Luke Altmyer at the helm, it is certainly possible that the Illini can pull off this win. Let's make a bit of history and bring the hardware back home to Champaign.

I-L-L

Home/Illinois Football